Sent you a PM. I fish it a few times every season.
Boat traffic can be nuts! Nice structure out there, would love to love it, its only about 5 mi. from my house.
Good Luck!
I had some recreational traffic by 8am, which shocked me, but they were done by 9am. Looked like a wake boarder training for a show or competition. Pontoons and sun bathers started hitting it around 10am. Kayakers, to my surprise, were also a later morning presence. However, I was impressed; no one got in my space or deliberately crowded the area I was fishing. Even other fishermen, we’d pass by from time to time, but we’d never crowd.
I expected this from a metro lake so I was there by 6:30am to help create a “quiet” window. I also chose to go on a weekday. Growing up on the St. Croix, I learned all about the “cruiser hatch” that came every Friday thru Sunday around 10am. The boat wakes took away shoreline casting, and moved the fish deep. It’s not as bad in the no-wake zones, but crowding is still an issue. I think the longest I’ve ever lasted was 1pm before the reward of fishing was no longer worth all the crowding.
The only way to love a body of water is to get on it, learn it, and figure out what fits you best. Good luck out there! If Johanna was that close to me, I’d be there often.
Wow thought it would be a zoo and I underestimated! Me, I would consider city lakes that do not allow any gas motors, big fish in those lakes too, or drive way out of the city. Glad you went on a weekday, still crazy with kiddos out of school. If you can be there 1st light which is about 45 min BEFORE sunrise, dang right? I remember getting a very nice mess of fish and it really just shut off around 730, I saw people launching at that time, hmm good luck I thought.PM me if you want to go out.
Good Luck!
Thanks Tim!
I don’t have a rig for “no gas motor” waters, and I’m just spoiled enough that I don’t want to rent. I like my “ant trails” that show me where I’ve been. On new water, it’s just really handy. I really don’t fish the metro much, but I might do it with more frequency having some youngsters in the family over there. A couple of them really like to fish and being 13 and 10, they need someone with a boat to get them off the shoreline.
A good numbers lake for the kids is Turtle, its a zoo too though. Traffic does not keep fish from biting and even keeps some pressure off of the lakes. All you need to fish a city lake like Phalen is an electric trolling motor. See your in ‘sconi, know anything about Sissabigama? Going there in about a week.
Sorry Tim, I’ve never fished that water.
It’s funny, I live in WI but if I travel for fishing, it’s largely out of state. The furthest I’ve gone in WI is Winnebago, east side, and that was over 20 years ago.
Turtle is close to Johanna just giving you an idea if you are taking the youngsters out.
All these metro lakes are crowded and overfished lately in my opinion. The DNR FiN program is getting bad. They can’t keep up with stocking, don’t stock a lot fo the FiN lakes anymore. Especially, in the east metro. East metro still has some nice smaller good shore fishing lakes with piers. But, unless you have a boat, pier fishing leaves a lot to be desired in the metro area. DNR complains they don’t have enough help……..HIRE PEOPLE! Plenty of money with that $19 billion surplus!!! Minnesotans need to start complaining! We should have the best FiN program in the country.
My sister and her family lived on the far southwestern shore of the lake 2013-2015. We’d pick up decent northerns, my nephew even caught a 36″ tiger muskie. Never really fished for panfish. Stay away from weekend days, traffic on the lake is nuts.
I drive pretty far to get out of the crazy metro-Only lakes I fish are the ones that ban gas motors-sometimes hit ‘tonka because I know the potential is there, but even on a weekday its bad before 11.
I used to fish Washington Co. lakes a lot but they got bad too.
I drive pretty far to get out of the crazy metro-Only lakes I fish are the ones that ban gas motors-sometimes hit ‘tonka because I know the potential is there, but even on a weekday its bad before 11.
I used to fish Washington Co. lakes a lot but they got bad too.
Tonka is arguably the busiest lake in the entire state in terms of boating traffic in the summer months. I fish it in the spring and fall. Summer months are a no go, but you’re right the potential is there. Pick a rainy or cloudy day and there will be a fraction of the people on it, and most other metro lakes. Plus the fishing will be better too.
Johanna Lake has quality largemouth and muskie fishing, plus plenty of smaller aggressive snot rockets. There’s no tournaments out there because it isn’t big enough and has limited parking.
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